BEIJING -- China saw the balance of agriculture-related loans increase by the end of last year, according to data released by the People's Bank of China, the country's central bank.

The balance of agriculture-related loans, both in renminbi and foreign currency, stood at 56.6 trillion yuan (about $7.97 trillion) in China at the end of 2023, up 14.9 percent year on year, according to the data.

The growth rate was 0.9 percentage points higher than the end of 2022.

Specifically, the rural loans balance stood at 47.26 trillion yuan at the end of last year, increasing by 15.2 percent year on year which was 1.7 percentage points higher than the end of 2022.

The balance of agriculture loan stood at 5.84 trillion yuan, increasing by 15.4 percent year on year which was 4.7 percentage points higher than the end of 2022.